Match of the Millennium

Description: Lita Luwanda from the Ikari Team takes on Mai Shiranui from the Women's Team. Mai's style and grace as well as Lita's strength and brutality are on full display as each fighter attempts to help their team move on from the prelims of the KoF tournament.

[MAI]
Mai got the word that her precious KoF team was in a Sudden Death round... wow! That's a lot of pressure to put on a girl, but Makoto was already out there kicking butt, so she needed to do her part as well as she could.

It's this that brings her to the railyards in Chicago to take on a new opponent. Mai doesn't know too much about her next challenge but she does enjoy fighting other talented ladies. It's a lot better than being creeped on by some weird old vampire, anyway! So she has a positive attitude.

It's a clear, hot, sunny day at the Chicago railyard where the challenge is set. The trains and machines around only add to the sweltering heat. Mai is glad she dressed light for this one... then again, she almost always does. She brought her signature fans with her, of course, and she fans herself with one a little before stepping up onto the empty track, and leaning forward into her combat stance.

[LITA]
The Ikari's route into this tie breaker round was convoluted and required a whole bunch of fortunate events to get them into it, requiring specific teams to lose, and specific conditions just to make it in. Lita, in particular felt a lot of responsibility for her team ending up in this predicament. She owed it to herself to make a good showing. Especially with her team mate, Hayley having been matched up against Makoto.

As Lita strolls into the railyard she comes through with her own signature weaponry. Her kunai strapped to her hips and to her thighs a big ol' fricking polycarbonate sword replica strapped to her back as she windmills her arms to loosen up.

It's at this point that the once King of Fighters runner up and former Blue Pro Belt holder bows to her opponent and takes her stance which looks like a military combative. She's ready to go once the official gives the signal.

COMBATSYS: Lita has started a fight here.

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Lita             0/-------/-------|

COMBATSYS: Mai has joined the fight here.

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Lita             0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0              Mai

[MAI]
"Nice to meet you. Let's be sure to have a good clean fight, right?" She's cheerful, but her stance doesn't change. Mai is watching Lita carefully, swaying just a little as she starts to pick up the rhythm of what today's matchup will be. She has a lot of energy and looks like she's ready to put on a burst of speed.

The bout begins, and Mai comes right out of the gate swinging! She leaps forward, with an aggressive opener. The leap gets her just above the steam and smoke on the ground, and then she dives down. She leads with her shoulder, her fan held behind her as she goes for a crashing dive attack.

COMBATSYS: Mai successfully hits Lita with Musasabi no Mai.
- Power hit! -

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Lita             0/-------/----===|=------\-------\0              Mai

[LITA]
"Likewise."

The blonde Ikari finds herself woefully unprepared for the sudden burst of speed that comes from the kunoichi. As she takes a step back and tries to turtle up behind her guard, Mai plows into her, knocking her off her feet and her back slams into the ground. She curls herself up and into a roll that brings her to a crouched position before quickly drawing and flinging five kunai at the ninja. Keen eyes may spot fishing line tied to the loops on the throwing weapons.

COMBATSYS: Mai blocks Lita's Kunai Spread.

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Lita             0/-------/-======|===----\-------\0              Mai

[MAI]
Mai bounces off the strike, and lands on the ground, not so far away as she was before. She has to react fast, as Lita throws a whole handful of knives at her. Fortunately, Mai still has her fan, which she holds up. One would think a paper fan isn't such a great defense against a sharp weapon. Scissors beats paper, after all. But the block seems to spare Mai from getting all of the damage from that dangerous throw... even if it perforates her fan.

She looks disappointed at the hole in it... and closes it... then opens it again. When she does so, the fan is somehow once again intact. Mai smiles. That's ninja magic, for you... or at least, ninja slight of hand.

Of course, slight of hand is used to make attacks deceptive. Mai seems as if she's going to throw the fan in response to the kunai...

But she instead dives down into a sliding kick, countering against Lita's low roll. Mai's kick strikes up toward the heavens at the moment of impact.

COMBATSYS: Lita blocks Mai's Benitsuru no Mai.

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Lita             0/-------/=======|===----\-------\0              Mai

[LITA]
When the kunai look like they've been adequately deflected and/or slowed down, the Ikari yanks on the fishing line to abort the flight path. No reason to risk liability due to accidental audience perforation.

The soldier finds herself raising an eyebrow at the display of ninja magic before she finds the kunoichi coming back into range once more. As Mai slides into her, Lita drops to one knee to redirect the path of the sliding kick with a slight grunt before attempting to grab that extended foot and attempt to twist it a bit before trying to work the grapple into side control.

COMBATSYS: Mai blocks Lita's Medium Throw.

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Lita             1/-------/=======|====---\-------\0              Mai

[MAI]
"Oh, quick reflexes!" Mai says, sounding happy and enthusiastic to have been stopped in her tracks. At least for now, before things get dire, she's being playful and having some fun.

Lita grabs her foot, which is a good thought, but Mai knows how to roll with a throw instead of against it. She slips out, escaping the grapple with minimal damage to her ankle. She is a little off-balance for a moment. Rather than let that slow her down, Mai leans into it, keeping her shoulder low and working her off balance stance into something like a dance. She picks up a sudden burst of speed and wind as she turns around. She whips her fan out, pulling another and quickly opening and shutting them as she spins. The energy of her dance and the open-shut motion causes an unpredictable flurry.

COMBATSYS: Lita interrupts Hakuro No Mai from Mai with Rising Front Kick.

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Lita             1/----===/=======|=======\-------\1              Mai

[LITA]
Unable to maintain a grip, the soldier is forced to quickly abandon any ideas of maintaining a hold on the elusive ninja. Normally, Lita would pounce on someone being off balance but there's something about how quickly and gracefully Mai Shiranui recovers that gives the former Delta Red pause and so she backs off.

The fans are drawn and Lita doesn't bother with trying to predict the flurry. She throws herself into the storm of fans with one foot extended as she takes to the air connecting with the heel before the fan strike knocks her to the side. As the soldier slides to a halt, she rubs out a little bit of the pain in her ribs before returning to the combative stance.

[MAI]
Mai is hard countered by a sudden kick to her jaw! She lets out a little "Ow!" yelp as she stumbles back from it. Her fans close in her hands as her attack is solidly interrupted... and that was a real good hit, too.

Mai has the choice to remain good natured here, but a hit like that starts to get her chi boiling. A little flare of fire builds up behind her eyes....though it doesn't quite roll all the way to her hands.

Mai wants to keep up the pressure. But she also needs a moment to recover. She tries to do what comes to mind naturally and rely on her reflexes. She does a very quick kick, jumping back after the strike. It's a test of her own reaction time more than Lita's at this point, as Mai needs to reset her stance and positioning.

COMBATSYS: Mai successfully hits Lita with Evasive Strike.
- Power hit! -

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Lita             1/=======/=======|=======\==-----\1              Mai

[LITA]
Lita makes the mistake of eyeing that small bit of fire in her hand. It, unfortunately for the soldier, draws her attention away from the actual danger of that quick kick violently snapping her head back as she attempts to step back to buy herself some space to react to that ball of fire which ends up playing into the ninja's hand.

Her hand reaches for the quick release latch on her sword as she tries to blink away the spots she was seeing. She takes on a sword wielding stance with her polycarbonate replica and then she charges in swinging horizontally on the first strike, vertically on the second strike, and then following up with a downward diagonal strike on the final slash.

COMBATSYS: Mai full-parries Lita's Triple Slash!!

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Lita             1/-======/=======|=======\====---\1              Mai

[MAI]
Now a sword... replica or not, that's dangerous! But Mai is activated and focused now. Her fast strike hits home, and suddenly she's back in the game, fully focused and ready.

The blade comes crashing for her. She swings ... meeting it with the wooden edge of a closed fan.

Somehow, that holds up just fine.

She steps back as she does battle, matching footwork, but blocks Lita's strikes blow for blow. On the vertical strike, Mai twists her fan and slams it downward, the fan briefly opening as she turns the blade away. Then on the last, diagonal strike, she raises her fan up to meet it. "Ah! That's powerful!" Mai says, in spite of the fact that she blocked it.

She opens the fan again even as she holds it against Lita's sword, showing off a floral decoration. "But not quick enough to best the flower of King of Fighters!"

"Hissatsu-" And now, instead of just a flicker, there really is fire in Mai's follow up attack! The flame flares around her body with a sudden bright surge as she tucks into a forward roll. "Shinobibachi!" Mai transitions the roll into a forward dive. The power of chi surrounds her. The air here is already searing hot, but around Mai's body, it's even hotter, distorted as she ignites in flame.

COMBATSYS: Mai successfully hits Lita with Hissatsu Shinobibachi EX.

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Lita             2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|=======\=======\1              Mai

[LITA]
She put a lot of oomph into that series of strikes. Unfortunately it left her completely wide open to getting rammed by a human fireball and sent flying off of her feet. She works herself to one knee with teeth gritted in pain and slams a fist into the ground.

She takes a deep breath and then rushes at the ninja with sword held lengthwise as she tries to tackle her and trap her beneath the blade, while she goes into full mount delivering a flurry of hammerfists until her strength gives out and she falls over onto the ground.

COMBATSYS: Lita can no longer fight.

[          \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  <
Mai              1/=======/=======|

COMBATSYS: Lita successfully hits Mai with Seeing Red.

[                  \\\\\\\\\\\\  <
Mai              2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|

[MAI]
Mai thought the battle was basically won after that chi attack. And she's about ready to give herself a bow, when Lita comes in swinging!

Mai had put enough aggression behind her assault that she didn't leave any more room for defense. Lita batters into her, slamming her with fist and sword. It interrupts Mai's smooth style and grace to be sure. She takes a heavy blow to the shoulder, and rolls back and out of it. Her outfit is torn a bit at the top, and she grits her teeth...

But it looks like that's all Lita is going to follow up with, and Mai, in spite of taking a bruising, is still on her feet.

She rubs at her shoulder, then at her side. "Oww... hey... great spirit. Oof."

She tries to open her fan, but... it's finally really broken, and falls apart in her hand. She laughs, and then gives a bow to her opponent. And then one for the fight officials. She pulls down the ripped shoulder of her outfit, but her back is to any cameras, just out of concidence. "Thanks for the bout!"

Log created on 20:24:23 07/16/2019 by Lita, and last modified on 10:22:13 07/17/2019.